MoodyBeats—Reimagining the Mixtape for the Haunted Digital Age
MoodyBeats is a love letter to the era of cassette tapes—but with a supernatural twist.
It lets anyone create, customize, and share haunted mixtapes that feel tactile, imperfect, retro, and a little bit spooky.
From designing your own tape shell to hearing the reels hiss and wobble, the entire experience blends nostalgia with eerie digital magic.
1. Maker Mode—Crafting Your Haunted Mixtape 📼
In Maker Mode, users build their mixtape from the ground up, just like in the old days—but with modern tools.
Choose Your Tracks 🎶
Users can add music from Uploaded audio files
They also set a tape title and add a personal message like “A mix just for you…”
True Cassette Flow: Side A / Side B
Instead of a typical playlist, MoodyBeats uses a multiple-sides format:
Sort songs into Side A and Side B
Arrange tracks by hand, giving warm analog vibes instead of algorithmic precision
Design Your Custom Tape Shell 🖍️
Your tape doesn't just sound unique—it looks unique.
Choose from multiple vibrant colors
Select from 4 presets with unique designs
The result feels like a physical artifact: something you could almost touch.
2. Player Mode—An Authentic (and Haunted) Tape Deck Experience
MoodyBeats doesn’t behave like a normal digital player.
It imitates the quirks and limitations of real cassette decks—the good, the bad, and the spooky.
Retro Playback Controls
Users can:
Play / Pause
Fast-Forward
Rewind
There’s no track list—the song names and counts are intentionally hidden to preserve authenticity.
“Skip” only happens when the user fast-forwards far enough to reach the next track.
Living, Breathing Tape Deck UI
The player looks like a vintage cassette machine:
- A/B side flipping animation
Tape Overheat Mechanic
Push the tape too hard, and MoodyBeats reacts:
Fast-forward repeatedly → the tape heats up
A “cool down” calms the machine before playback resumes
It's playful, unexpected, and adds a layer of personality.
3. Haunting UI—Where Nostalgia Meets Horror 🧟♂️
MoodyBeats injects supernatural energy into an otherwise familiar device.
Every interaction has a chance to feel… haunted.
Spooky Transitions
Don't press the fast forward button too many times... You might hear some creepy noises.
The buttons seem to act up if you dont handle them with care
Audio Jumpscares & Creepy Layers 👻
MoodyBeats hides subtle scares:
Random creepy audio cues during fast-forward or rewind
Very rare “jumpscare audios” blended into existing sound effects
It’s never too much—just enough to make the user question whether the tape is… alive.
4. Sharing the Experience—Haunted Envelope Export & Import 💌
What’s a mixtape if you can’t give it to someone?
MoodyBeats introduces a haunted sharing mechanic.
Shareable MoodyBeats URL
Every mixtape generates a unique link with:
A preview of the custom tape design
A mysterious, ghostly envelope animation when opened
Manual Export/Import
For full control, users can export or import:
Metadata
Audio files
Notes
Visual design configs
Everything is bundled into a single archive file—easy to store, send, or remix.
Custom Haunted Envelope Design
Creators can decorate their envelope with:
Colors, sigils
Stars, skulls, and many more sigils to choose from
Also sign your name (only if you want to)
The Envelope Opening Ceremony 📩
Receiving a MoodyBeats mixtape becomes an experience:
The envelope shakes
A cassette slowly slides out
A handwritten note fades in
The mixtape begins…
Inspiration
We were heavily inspired by the aesthetic of the visuals and audio of a character from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. The stand (character's ability), to be specific, called "Moody Blues," is what inspired a lot of features of this project.
The audios and aesthetics used for that character were very appropriate for this project. I, personally, found those voice effects very cool, and the color scheme was also super cool.
We'd like our users to find some Easter bugs related to this and many more characters. We love the show, and we know a lot of people who love it too, so we are very excited for them to use the website.
What's next?
We really want to develop an app from this project. I think this could be very good for us to start with. Something that is fun to use and not too difficult for us to make and change. We have used React Native, but we will still need to polish the app before we publish it on any platform.
MoodyBeats is More Than a Player—It’s a Haunted Digital Artifact 💫
It mixes nostalgia, handcrafted creativity, spooky ambience, and glitch-aesthetic storytelling into one cohesive platform.
Whether you’re making a heartfelt mix for a friend or a creepy soundscape for Halloween, MoodyBeats turns music into an experience, not just a playlist.
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